


A Carnival Wedding

by DieAstra



Category: Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: Episode: s07e03 Drive, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-18
Updated: 2020-10-18
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:53:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,232
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27089680
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DieAstra/pseuds/DieAstra
Summary: After the end of the episode "Drive", Chakotay and Kathryn take the Deltaflyer for a spin, while wearing the racing suits. Then a proposal happens.Inspired by three of Torri012's photo manipulations.
Relationships: Chakotay/Kathryn Janeway
Comments: 16
Kudos: 43





	A Carnival Wedding

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Torri012](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Torri012/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Janeway & Chakotay - photo manipulations (3) [images]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/27081499) by [Torri012](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Torri012/pseuds/Torri012). 



Chakotay had not known that Kathryn was so much into races. So when she agreed to Tom’s plan to join he had been surprised but he adored her for it, as he adored everything about her.

After Irina’s ploy had come out and after Kathryn had hosted a wedding ceremony, Chakotay dared to invite her to take the new Deltaflyer for a spin as well. After all, they had to make sure it was properly functioning again before sending Tom and B’Elanna on their honeymoon. It seemed reasonable.

He was sure she saw right through his lame excuse but she had just smiled and nodded. 

“Under one condition!” she’d said.

And so here they were, taking the Deltaflyer for a little spin, while wearing the grey-black-white racing suits.

Looking at Kathryn, Chakotay had no complaints. She looked wonderful. The suit hugged her in all the right places, more so than the regular Starfleet uniform. And something else was different. The captain seemed to have disappeared. For the next two hours, only Kathryn was on board.

And the way she looked at him, he mustn’t look so bad in this suit either. Chakotay had to hide a smile. She had no idea what he really was planning.

[](https://postimages.org/)

Kathryn had expressed interest to see the Möbius Inversion up close so that’s where they were headed. But Chakotay had set a slow pace, so he would be able to turn his head once in a while to watch Kathryn work. She was working the console with the same grace she did everything else too. Aside of B’Elanna, Chakotay could not wish for a better co-pilot.

Finally he decided they were close enough and stopped the flyer so they would be able to look at this thing that looked like a wormhole. Too bad it wasn’t big enough to get them home. Then Chakotay would have not have to do what he was about to do now.

“Look at it!” Kathryn exclaimed. “Isn’t it marvelous?”

“It is,” Chakotay agreed, with barely sparing it a glance. Looking at Kathryn’s face, sharing her excitement was far more interesting. And he wanted to watch every small reaction. She had such an expressive face. Sometimes she tried to hide her thoughts from him but in seven years he had become very good in reading her.

“So,” he casually started, “that was quite a ceremony yesterday, was it?”

“Oh yeah,” Kathryn agreed, without taking her eyes off the wonder in front of her for one second. “B’Elanna and Tom looked so happy!”

“Did you know that Tom proposed to her, right here where we are sitting now? B’Elanna told me. And did you also know that back on Earth it’s Carnival right now?”

She scrunched up her face, trying to find a connection between those two things. Finally she asked, “Brazilian Carnival? What has that got to do with anything?”

“Brazil is not the only country that celebrates carnival. Germany is quite big on it as well.”

Finally he had her attention. Wormhole forgotten, she turned to him.

“And…?”

“… and there is a custom I wanted to tell you about. The Carnival wedding.”

Seeing Tom and B’Elanna on their wedding day had stirred something in Chakotay. Something buried deep. And it had stirred a memory from his anthropology classes. He’d spent half of the night reading up on it so he could now present Kathryn with all the facts.

“On Carnival, all bets are off. Everything is allowed. It’s the last day before Lent starts. _‘Carne vale’_ means _‘Farewell to meat’_. It may also refer to the last chance of indulging in the passions of the flesh.”

“Did you say, _all_ bets are off?”

Kathryn’s mouth stood slightly open, and she looked a bit flustered. Despite of this, she nonchalantly waved her hand.

“Go on?”

“A Carnival wedding is not a real wedding. A ceremony is held but the marriage lasts only this one day, without any repercussions.”

He could see the exact moment Kathryn finally caught up with what he was trying to say. Her eyes took on a shine he hadn’t seen in a long time. Not since New Earth.

She got up from her seat, cocked her hip in a very suggestive way and said in an especially husky voice, “Well, _commander_ , I believe every wedding should start with a proposal, or am I wrong?”

Chakotay quickly jumped up from his seat as if it had suddenly caught fire.

[ ](https://postimages.org/)

Kathryn sat down on a box and Chakotay fell down on one knee in front of her.

All mischief forgotten, they both suddenly grew serious. Looking straight into her eyes, Chakotay went for his proposal.

“Kathryn, despite it being only for one day, would you please do me the honor of being my Carnival bride?”

“One day is better than nothing,” Kathryn whispered, then bent forward and kissed him.

It wasn’t their first kiss, he had been lucky enough to taste her lips already on New Earth, but this one held more promise with the things that might happen tonight.

[ ](https://postimages.org/)

After a while Kathryn pulled back.

“What now?”

Chakotay’s head was still spinning, and he looked at her helplessly. He hadn’t actually planned past this part. Kathryn clapped into her hands.

“Can the bride celebrate the ceremony as well?”

Chakotay got up together with her. 

“I don’t see anyone else here, so you might as well do it.”

Kathryn looked around searchingly.

“The rings?”

“Oooh, right!”

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a box with two rings. He knew they couldn’t wear them on the ship and he would recycle them before they went back, but a proper wedding ceremony needed rings.

Kathryn started with her speech. She was still in practice after yesterday.

“Commander Chakotay, will you take Captain Kathryn Janeway to have and to hold for this one day until Carnival ends?”

“I will.”

“And you, Captain Janeway, will you do the same? – I will!”

And they exchanged rings and kissed again. This kiss was far more arousing than the first one and they came both away from it very flushed.

Chakotay looked at Kathryn. Kathryn looked at Chakotay.

“What now?”

“It’s up to you but I’m up for everything that a proper marriage involves.”

“Everything? As in – _everything_?”

Chakotay just looked at her, trying to convey with his eyes what his mouth didn’t dare to say.

Kathryn started to think aloud, still having her arms around Chakotay. It seemed she didn’t want to let go anytime soon.

“We’ll have to distract Tuvok. He seems to have a sixth sense and always turns up at the wrong time.”

Chakotay smiled.

“He’ll have his hands full with the still ongoing investigation. I volunteered him to help with that. He’ll be as far away from _Voyager_ as possible.”

Kathryn laughed.

“You did not!”

“I did too!”

“Didn’t!”

“Totally did!”

Suddenly Kathryn disengaged herself from Chakotay’s embrace and sat down at her station again. When he just stood there confused, she impatiently said, “Well, why are you just standing there? I believe we have a marriage to consummate and I sure won’t do it on the hard floor of the Deltaflyer. I’m too old for this.”

Suddenly Chakotay was very eager to return to Voyager as well.

The Carnival wedding may only last one day, but he would make sure they made the most of it.

THE END


End file.
